


(Not) Dying For Brew

by nabawrites



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Anchors, Angst, Banter, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Future Fic, Getting Together, M/M, Miscommunication, coffee shop AU, cute nicknames, puns, sort of slow burn?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-19
Updated: 2019-12-19
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:27:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21856045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nabawrites/pseuds/nabawrites
Summary: Liam graduated from college, and now he’s back in Beacon Hills. He didn’t expect to run into Theo again, especially not in a coffee shop. It stirs up some old feelings he hadn’t ever really forgotten about...
Relationships: Liam Dunbar/Theo Raeken
Comments: 30
Kudos: 141
Collections: 2019 Thiam Reverse Big Bang





	(Not) Dying For Brew

**Author's Note:**

  * For [snaeken](https://archiveofourown.org/users/snaeken/gifts).



> I had a lot of fun writing this. It's my second ever Teen Wolf fanfic, my second coffee shop au, and my first Thiam fic. I hope you guys enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Let me know how you think I did in the comments!
> 
> I spent approx. 10 years trying to embed the fanart into this gosh darn fic, but I'm a failure of a human being so have this link instead:   
> https://nabawrites.tumblr.com/post/189750904789/officialthiamlibrarys-thiam-reverse-big-bang

Liam didn’t really know what he expected. It had been four years since he’d been in Beacon Hills, but nothing had changed. After the mess that had been Anuk-ite, the town had mostly calmed down. Every now and then there had been some random pack making problems or a coven messing with the nemeton, but Liam had been able to finish high school and move on to college without any huge problems. Scott was heading the effort to deal with the hunters, but Liam had really only helped with that occasionally and the hunters had never returned to Beacon Hills. Without any chaos to drag Liam back, he’d had no reason to return. He went to college out of state, had spent his summers interning and studying abroad, and when he did have a break, his parents wanted to spend it going on vacation. Why spend Spring Break in Beacon Hills when you can afford to go to the Caribbean for a week? 

Nevertheless, college was finally over. After graduation, Liam had had to decide what he wanted to do with his life. A B.A. in History is only applicable to so many jobs, and there were only so many of those that Liam could actually see himself doing. After some research, he’d settled on teaching high school history, remembering how much he’d looked forward to class when he was in school. So Liam decided to go back to Beacon Hills to get his teaching license. Mr. Yukimura, Kira’s dad, had agreed to let him be his teaching assistant. He figured if he really wanted to, he could always get his master’s online eventually.

Liam couldn’t really decide how it felt to be back. He couldn’t decide how he felt about the fact that nothing seemed to have changed, despite the fact that Liam certainly had. Though he’d always struggle with it, Liam had gotten even better at controlling his anger since high school. Liam thought that had something to do with having a better overall understanding of himself. What Theo had said all those years ago about Liam only feeling one emotion at a time and that emotion being anger was absolutely accurate, as much as Liam hadn’t wanted to admit it at the time. In his first year of college, Liam had felt everything as anger: stress, exhaustion, anxiety for the future. When he'd realized what he was doing and how it was affecting his education and his relationships, he'd endeavored to change that. In the process, he'd learned quite a lot about himself. That was when he'd changed his major to history. He'd realized he had only chosen business because it seemed like the 'smart' degree to get for securing a job post-graduation.

Now, three years later, he was pursuing licensing for a job he was excited about, he was only occasionally emotionally constipated, and he was back home. As he walked around downtown, he realized just how much he'd missed it. Scott was at vet school, but he planned to return to Beacon Hills to take over for Deaton. Stiles was in his first year at the FBI after getting his bachelor's in Criminal Science and the one year application period. Malia had found her calling as a model (college being completely optional). Lydia was conquering the world after earning her (first) master's and beginning her Ph.D. candidacy. Mason had gone to the same college Liam had, and Corey had attended a different college in the same state. Unlike Liam, however, they had decided not to return to Beacon Hills. 

Everyone was out there living their lives, apart from the town that had brought them so much danger, stress, and grief. Except Liam. He was the only one to remain.

Or so he thought, until he stopped in the middle of the sidewalk in downtown Beacon Hills at the sight of a coffee shop. It hadn't been there was Liam left for college.

Liam didn't even have to pause to think who owned it before he stomped his way into the shop. Few people would ever name a coffee shop "Chimera Coffee", and most of them were dead. Even without knowing that Corey no longer lived in Beacon Hills, Liam would recognize the tagline anywhere.

" _I'm not dying for brew._ "

Liam had all but yelled the sentence at the man behind the counter, though it had likely sounded more like an incredulous question. Part of Liam's brain flinched from the thought at the implication that Theo was now a man, but there was no denying it. Theo had always looked mature for his age, but the slight beard and tacky apron just served as that much more of a reminder that years had passed since the Dread Doctors and Theo's death, since the Ghost Riders and Theo's resurrection (at his hands, no less), and since Theo had fought with them against the Anuk-ite and the hunters.

Liam had gone off to college. Theo, apparently, had opened a coffee shop. 

Liam's not sure anything else on this planet could have been more of a non-sequitur. Theo. Owning a coffee shop.

The hell?

Theo, despite being yelled at by Liam, who had yet to tell anyone other than Mr. Yukimura that he was coming back, did not look remotely surprised to see him or to be addressed in such a manner. Despite the years that had passed, the scruff that covered his strong jaw, and the drastic change in scenery, Liam knew that amused smirk like the back of his hand. After throwing it at Liam for a brief moment, Theo turned back to his customer and finished taking her order. As he moved to begin making her drink, he glanced back over at Liam. "You got a problem with my business, Dunbar?" 

Liam spluttered. "No! I just- You- _A coffee shop_?"

Theo shrugged. "What about it? It's lucrative, I have a consistent clientele, and I always know all the gossip in town." Theo flashed him a shark-toothed grin. "You do remember how much I love drama, don't you, Liam?"

Liam glared. Apparently every ounce of Liam's new self-awareness and restraint went out the window when he was in the same room as Theo. "What's with the name?" Remembering there were customers around, Liam lowered his voice and stepped closer to the counter. "Are you _trying_ to be obvious?"

Theo snorted and rolled his eyes. "Please. After the Anuk-ite, everybody already knows. I just made it a brand." Theo paused for a second, his smirk softening. "Honestly, I think people around here feel it kind of comforting, like if we make light of it they can forget about what happened."

Before Liam could figure out what to say to that Theo reverted to his usual expression. "And for the out-of-towners who didn't have the immense pleasure of meeting the Anuk-ite or trying to kill us all, the chimera thing makes for a pretty good theme. I offer the traditional coffees, mochas, lattes, frappes, and whatnot, but I have a lot of mixes and hybrids. And I name them weird things, so people assume that's what the name came from. I'm very clever, if I do say so myself." 

Theo's smirk was arrogant, as if that pride was all there was to it, but Liam had no intention of just forgetting that one moment where Theo let slip that he cared.

Liam huffed. "Whatever. Glad our extremely dangerous and stressful lives are making you lots of money."

Shrugging, Theo called out the customer's name and she came to get her frappe. “Well, somebody should get to cash in on it. If you need a job, it can make you lots of money too. I think trying to kill us made the citizens of Beacon Hills very generous tippers."

Liam rolled his eyes as Theo started on another drink. Liam couldn't decide how he felt about seeing him again. Theo had certainly done a lot for the pack, despite the fact that Scott would never let him join it. After the first-gen McCall pack had gone off to start their adult lives, Liam hadn't maintained Scott's attempt at distance between the pack and Theo, and the chimera had been instrumental the few times something had happened after Scott left. Post-resurrection, Theo was actually pretty funny - when one remembered not to take his snark personally - and he could even be kind when he wanted to be, though it was rare enough that it barely deserved mentioning. Though there was the one time he single-handedly saved Liam from failing biology…

"... you doing back here?"

Liam blinked. "What?"

Theo gave him a small smile, though it was just as much a smirk as anything else. "What are you doing back here?"

Liam shrugged. "I graduated. Where else is there to go?"

Setting a large coffee cup in front of Liam, Theo raised an eyebrow and leaned against the counter. "Oh, I don't know, Europe? Rome? Greece? Mykonos? You like history; wouldn't you like to see where it was made?"

Liam wasn't really surprised Theo had remembered he liked history. Part of what had made Theo so dangerous when he was their enemy, and then helpful when he was their ally, was that he was observant and he remembered _everything_ about _everyone_. "I did. Studied abroad a lot. Like, as much as humanly possible. And superhumanly." Liam gave Theo a cheeky grin followed by a questioning look regarding the coffee cup in front of him before he took a sip.

Okay, that _was_ surprising. "Since when do you know my coffee order?"

Theo gave a casual shrug. "You asked Mason to grab you one once when I was helping you with biology." Theo cleared his throat and moved on. "So how did that go anyway? College? You were a business major, right?"

Liam snorted. "I was, for like 2 semesters. I switched to history. Might be the smartest decision I've ever made. Ever." Liam took another sip of his drink. "So I say my coffee order one time over the phone almost 5 years ago, and you remember it perfectly?"

Theo apparently decided he didn't want to answer the second question because he completely ignored it. "Yeah, I never really thought you were much of a business guy."

Liam glared, but there wasn't much heat in it. "What's that supposed to mean, Raeken?"

Theo threw up his hands, the picture of innocence if it weren't for the smirk. "Well, whatever I mean, you must agree with me, seeing as you changed your major."

Liam rolled his eyes and took another swig of his drink. "Well, apparently you aren't who I thought you were either.”

Theo raised an eyebrow, smirk still in place, but Liam remembered enough of his semi-friend to know that Theo was probably a little nervous about in what way Liam meant that statement. After everything that happened and the fact that Scott still refused to forgive him (despite forgiving literally everyone else under the sun), Liam knew that the amount of acceptance that Liam and Mason had given him was everything. Though Corey was still a little aloof, he was at least cordial, and that progress meant a lot to the man who was still trying to make up for the mistakes he’d made as a kid and teenager. Still, Theo did a good job of hiding it from anybody who wasn’t looking really closely. “And how do you figure that?”

Liam returned Theo’s smirk, though he admittedly wasn’t as good at it as the chimera. “The Theo I knew four years ago was cool. Suave. A total bad boy.” Theo’s brows climbed higher on his forehead until they lacked the ability to ascend any further, his smirk faltering as something a bit more incredulous began to replace it. After a pause for dramatic effect, Liam said, “The Theo I knew four years ago would never have worn that apron,” and watched Theo laugh and the tension deflate.

Theo looked down at the apron, pulling out the sides so the words could be clearly read. ‘BANG THE BARISTA’ was sprawled across the front of the bright blue apron in yellow letters. Theo laughed harder. “What? I like puns.”

“Mhm. Like, ‘I’m not dying for brew’.”

Theo nodded nonchalantly. “Exactly. Puns are totally cool.”

“Yeah, sure,” Liam replied, sarcasm dripping through his ear-to-ear grin.

“And I’m totally still suave.”

“Mhm. Yep. Totally. Very suave. And that canary yellow is totally your color.”

Theo sniggered. “If you’re so suave how do you know this shade is canary?”

“I’m in touch with my feminine side.” Liam pretended to flip his hair over his shoulder. “Besides, I said you were suave. I didn’t say I ever was.”

Theo shrugged. “You had your moments, I guess,” he said, a small, not nearly smirky enough smile on his face.

Liam cleared his throat, adamantly refusing to believe there was any chance a sort-of compliment from _Theo Raeken_ would be enough to make him blush. “Uh. Thanks.”

Theo cleared his throat. “Yep.”

Awkward…

Luckily for Theo and Liam both, at that moment another customer walked into the shop and Liam stepped out of the way so they could order. Liam took another swallow of his drink and waited for the customer to finish and pay. Once the customer stepped away to wait for his drink, Liam went back up to the counter. “So I’ll, uh, I’ll just let you get back to work. Thanks for the coffee, by the way. It’s, um, just the way I like it.”

Theo gave him another of his signature smirks. “I know. You’re welcome.”

Liam rolled his eyes, but he was smiling anyway. He stepped away from the counter and headed for the door. Just as he reached to open it, Theo called out to him. “Hey, Dunbar!”

Liam looked over his shoulder. “Yeah, Raeken?”

Theo’s grin lost all arrogance. This was the first pure smile Liam had seen from him today, all happiness, no snark. “Come again soon.”

It’s what everyone in customer service says when people leave, but when Theo said it, it sounded like a question. Liam looked down at his coffee cup, like he was considering it, then he looked back up and returned Theo’s smile. “I mean, I guess the coffee’s worth it.”

Theo rolled his eyes as Liam left the shop.

  
  


Liam did indeed return to Chimera Coffee. There were always people around, sitting at tables on their laptops or in groups of friends, but there usually weren’t any people in line. Every time Liam walked in, Theo would get started on a drink for him. The first couple of times it was Liam’s favorite drink order, but around his fourth visit, Liam had asked about the ‘mixes and hybrids’ he’d mentioned that first time. Since then, Theo had made him a different drink every time, keeping in mind his tastes and feedback to help him choose which ones he thought Liam would like. And every time, Theo refused to accept payment. Liam tried not to think too hard about why.

It wasn't that Liam wasn't curious. It also definitely wasn't that Liam thought he had some idea as to why. It was 100% due to the fact that he wished it was for a very specific reason and Liam didn't think it was remotely possible that his wish could come true.

You see, Liam was falling. This new Theo that owned a coffee shop and wore a very punny apron and gave him free coffee and made jokes without intending to incite any drama, this Theo was _attractive_. He'd always been hot, Liam knew, but now he was more. So much _more_. Liam had enjoyed fighting with him, had recognized in him someone he could go toe-to-toe with, someone who could take everything Liam could give and come out the other side okay. Liam had seen a little bit of a kindred spirit in Theo, someone who had so much anger and didn't do the best job of channeling it into something productive instead of destructive.

But now Theo seemed to have his life together. Liam didn't get the impression he had much in the way of friends or people in general, but he did appear to be happier. Content. Liam knew he probably wished he had a pack, that he had people who cared about him, but he also figured Theo didn't expect it. Theo, almost certainly, figured owning a coffee shop and not having anyone actively trying to kill him was more than he deserved. 

Liam couldn't help but be impressed by this Theo - the Theo that, despite everything he'd been through and everything he'd lost, was making the most of his second chance. He might still be lonely and he might still feel the guilt of all the bad things he'd done in the name of the Dread Doctors and in the name of himself, but he was also healing.

And just because Theo was lonely, that didn't mean he was desperate. Theo had enough anger on his own, enough emotional incompetence for one person, enough hurt and grief and history for a lifetime. He didn't need to add Liam's to it.

So if some tiny part of Liam wished Theo gave him free drinks and sought his approval of his various recipes because Theo liked him, Liam promptly shut it up and shoved it down as deep in his heart as he could.

Theo was on a path to healing, to making amends for what he'd done. Liam had quite literally raised Theo from hell. Theo probably just saw it as paying his debts, one coffee at a time.

If only Theo knew he didn't owe Liam anything at all.

  
  


"What're you in the mood for today, Little Wolf?"

All Liam's self-control was required to prevent him from reacting to the nickname. It was… cute. And no matter how many times Theo called him that, it still made Liam blush. He cleared his throat and took a seat on a stool at the counter. "You usually surprise me. Creativity slump?"

Theo shrugged. "Not particularly. I just thought I'd give you the option to choose today. You don't have to, just an offer."

Liam sighed and rubbed his hands up his face and through his hair, closing his eyes for a brief moment before forcing them open to meet Theo's. "If it's not too much trouble, I'd like to make as few choices as possible for the rest of my life. Takes less energy."

Theo chuckled and grabbed a cup. "That bad, huh?"

Liam groaned, dropping his head against the counter. "I'd rather have dealt with another deadpool. Forget werewolves, children are the real monsters."

"I thought you wanted to teach high school? Define children."

"Third graders," he said, sitting back up straight. "I have to get experienced with multiple grade levels. It's supposed to prepare me to help students who don't learn at the same pace as the others in their class or process information at the same level I do. And I'm probably going to die."

Theo snorted. “Well, we wouldn’t want that to happen, now would we, Little Wolf?”

Liam blinked up at Theo. “Wow.”

Theo raised an eyebrow. “Wow, what?”

“Was that, like,” Liam shook his head at himself like he couldn’t believe how ridiculous he was, “totally insensitive?”

“What, you mean because I’ve actually died and went to hell and all that?” Theo gave him an amused grin. “If I were somebody else, it probably would be. I don’t particularly care, to be honest. I’m not that sensitive.”

Liam nodded, looking a little relieved. Theo set a cup in front of him and he took a drink. He looked up at Theo with wide eyes. “This is so good! Dude, why didn’t I try this one sooner?”

Liam pretended he didn’t see the proud little smile that Theo tried to hide. “It’s new.” He paused, like he was trying to decide if he was going to continue. “Actually, you’re my first taste-tester, other than myself.”

Raising an eyebrow, Liam took another drink. “So it’s not even on the menu yet?” 

Theo shook his head, leaning back against the counter behind the bar. “No, I wanted to make sure it was good enough first. Reputation and all that.”

“Well, this definitely qualifies.” Liam could barely detach his lips from the straw long enough to speak. “This is like all my favorite things were poured in a cup and mixed together in a way that isn’t weird.” Theo laughed. “What are you going to call it?”

Theo looked away for a second, then down to the cup in Liam’s hand. “The _Little Wolf_?”

“Uh-huh.” Liam looked him up and down, noticing that _The Theo Raeken_ still wasn’t looking at him. “You don’t sound so sure about that.”

“I’m sure,” Theo said, finally looking up at Liam’s face. “If there are no objections.”

Squinting up at Theo, Liam leaned forward, placing his elbows on the counter. “And why are you naming a drink after me?”

“Who said I was naming it after you?”

Liam snorted. “Please. You’ve been calling me ‘Little Wolf’ since I came back to Beacon Hills.”

Theo quirked his lips into a wry grin. “Fine, I’m naming it after you. I don’t see why I shouldn’t since you inspired it.”

Taken a little aback, Liam leaned back a little on his bar stool. “What do you mean, I inspired it?”

“You literally said about a minute ago that it tasted like all your favorite things in a cup.”

“Right, but-”

“I can change the name-”

“No!” Liam lurched forward but stopped himself. “No,” he repeated, calmer. “I like it.” Theo gave him a dubious look. “Really, I do. I just didn’t expect it.”

Theo’s eyebrows rose up his forehead. “Why not?” When Liam shrugged, Theo gave a huff that was a mixture of fondness and exasperation. “You do realize you’re basically my only friend, right?”

“I-” Liam sucked in a breath. “I hadn’t. Thought of it. Like that.”

With a wry grin, Theo shook his head. “Like what? That we’re friends or that I don’t have any others?”

“No, I just-” Thiam forced out an exhale, frustrated at his inability to communicate the way he wanted to. Theo was the one who was good with words. “You started over. You built a business. It’s been five years, and every person who comes in here smiles at you and laughs with you. I- Just because Scott can’t get over what happened doesn’t mean you couldn’t have made friends outside of the McCall pack.”

“Like who?” Theo grabbed a towel and started wiping down the already-clean counter, a sure sign he was uncomfortable with the current conversation.

“A business partner? A girlfriend? A neighbor?” Theo shook his head. “Oh, come on? How is that possible?”

Theo scoffed. “What about this is surprising?”

Liam rolled his eyes. “How about the part where you’re an attractive, intelligent young man who’s charismatic, funny, and owns his own business. Why wouldn’t people want to be friends with you?”

Theo pretended not to preen for a moment, clasping his hands together and staring at them as he leaned his elbows on the counter. “Have you considered that I might not _want_ to be friends with anyone else?”

Liam snorted. “Why not?”

“Maybe they’re boring.”

“I’m not boring? I’m going to be a history teacher; it’s not exactly like I’m living the high life.”

Theo opened his mouth to reply but stopped himself before he could say anything. After a slow exhale, he looked right into Liam’s eyes, leaning forward a little. Liam subconsciously leaned forward, too. “Little Wolf, you are the opposite of boring. You always have been.”

Liam didn’t know what to say to that. The butterflies in his stomach gave him an indication of how he _felt_ about it.

Liam took another drink of his _Little Wolf_. Theo moved to clean another section of the counter.

  
  


One day was particularly busy, so Liam sat at the counter with a book while Theo ran back and forth between the register and the machines. After so much of this, Liam’s brain began to scream at him so he put his book away and decided to just observe his surroundings. Mostly Theo. He was so energetic when he worked. So charismatic with the customers. Despite all the history in this town, nobody seemed to hold anything against him. It was like he’d completely started over and earned the whole town’s trust in less than five years - all while starting his own very successful business in the heart of Beacon Hills. Liam hadn’t forgotten what Theo had said the other day about people being boring, but the chimera did a wonderful job of hiding that opinion from his customers.

As Liam watched, he fiddled with his drink. Another _Little Wolf_ , the only repeat he’d had since Theo had first surprised him with a drink off his menu. Theo hadn’t been able to fully hide his pleased grin when Liam had requested it. During a lull between customers, Liam piped up to ask a question that had been rolling around in his head for a while. "So what's up with the anchor?"

Theo froze in the middle of wiping down a measuring cup. “What?”

Liam smiled. “The anchor? In the logo? What does that have to do with the supernatural ‘brand’ thing?”

Theo went back to wiping down his instruments, shrugging as he did so. “Werewolves have anchors. Pretty much every kind of shape-shifting creature does, as well as some others. How is that not supernatural?”

“Well, yeah, but the humans don’t know about that. Unless you explain that to every patron who comes in here as some kind of conversation starter, I don’t really get why you would pick it as your logo.” Liam took another sip of his drink, watching Theo try to decide how to answer him. Liam hadn’t anticipated this being that awkward of a conversation, but Theo’s body language was tense and his chemosignals were… confusing.

A few moments later, Theo let out a resigned sigh. “Anchors matter to-” He turned to Liam, expression saying he didn’t want to say what he was about to but didn’t see any other option. “Look, back when I was with the Dread Doctors, before I went to hell, I- My anchor wasn’t anything good. It wasn’t a person I loved or a calming memory or a cute little quote like Satomi’s pack. It was my spite and my ambition and my ruthlessness - the knowledge that if I lost control I would lose everything I’d worked for. But after,” Theo paused, looking around to make sure no one was listening in, and Liam took that opportunity to interrupt.

“Theo, I didn’t mean to pry, you don’t have to-”

“After I came back,” Theo pushed on, giving Liam a look that told him not to interrupt.”after _you_ brought me back - that changed. I changed. I wanted to do better, so I got myself a new anchor.” Theo took a deep breath, eyes glancing away before they returned to Liam’s. Looking into them, Liam could finally decrypt Theo’s entangled chemosignals. There was a bit of… apprehension in those eyes, if not actual fear, as well as anticipation. And hope. “The logo isn’t about the brand. It’s about me, about who I decided I wanted to be this time around. Every day for the last four years, I walked into this store, saw that anchor, and reminded myself why I was playing the good guy now. And I kept playing it until it wasn’t an act anymore.”

Liam’s heart felt… weird. It was this odd mixture of sadness at the pain in Theo’s voice and happiness at how far Theo had come and a bit of hope for something he couldn’t - or wouldn’t - put a name to. “And…” Liam cleared his throat. “And what is your anchor? Why- Why change so much?”

Theo gave him a small, sad, bitter smile. “Don’t you know, Little Wolf?”

Liam opened his mouth to answer - though he wasn’t sure with what - but a small group of teens came in the shop. Theo moved to take their orders before Liam could say a word.

  
  


It was closing time. 

Liam had known that there’d be no real chance for him and Theo to talk if they were surrounded by customers all day, so he’d left the shop while Theo was taking orders from those teens. He’d gone home. He’d tried to read some more of a book he was working through on the Civil War, but he had been too distracted to get through a single paragraph. He’d gone for a run - a really fucking long one - but rather than distracting him, it had given him an extended period of time to think and obsess.

About half an hour before the coffee shop was due to close, Liam gave up distracting himself. He got off his couch and he made his way downtown. He got to Chimera Coffee just a few minutes before the shop closed, but he loitered outside, trying to figure out what the hell he was about to do. Theo had made it pretty clear that Liam meant something to him. The look in his eyes and the chemosignals overwhelming Liam's senses as he'd said, "Don't you know, Little Wolf," had been pretty obvious. Theo had named a drink after Liam. Theo had made words they'd exchanged during a battle in which they'd formed a truce and almost died for each other as the slogan for his coffee shop. He'd put the phrase on his _logo_ , granted it was a punned-up version of it. 

" _I'm not dying for brew._ "

It was a good line, a good pun, and Liam was sure it contributed to the brand and the atmosphere and the general impression his shop made on its customers. But it didn't change the fact that those words had been a turning point in Liam and Theo's relationship. It didn't change the fact that Liam could remember the exact expression on Theo's face when Liam had agreed to fight with him. It didn't change the fact that moments after they'd exchanged those words, Theo had sacrificed himself to protect Liam. The chimera who'd been willing to kill his own pack had also been willing to lay down his life for a guy who'd essentially used the threat of returning him to hell to blackmail him into helping him and his friends.

Theo and Liam had been through a lot together, with the ghost riders, with the hunters, and with the few battles that had followed Scott and the rest of the original McCall pack leaving the puppy pack behind. After everything that had happened, Liam couldn't deny there had to be some kind of connection between them. The friendship they'd been forming since Liam's return had been an easy one - one where neither had to work hard to carry a conversation, where neither had to pretend to be someone or something they weren't. Their friendship meant so much to Liam. He might have other friends than Theo, but he didn't have anyone he felt this close to. Not even Mason was this close to him nowadays. The two had drifted apart since college had started and he and Corey had really settled into each other and their adult lives together.

The question wasn't whether Liam wanted what was sure to happen if he walked through that door. The question wasn't whether Liam cared about Theo, or even if Liam cared about him like that. It wasn't if Theo cared about him in return, because even with as oblivious as he was, Liam knew that much. The question was if Liam was willing to risk their easy, natural friendship for a relationship that might not work out. Liam was, apparently, all Theo had, and Theo was without a doubt the most important person in Liam's life. Neither of them had particularly good experiences when it came to relationships ending. Was the possibility of what they could have worth risking what they already did.

Liam fisted his hands and pushed his way into the shop.

It was empty. Theo had already done most of the cleaning up. All that was left was mopping the floors and turning off the POS system. Given the lack of things to occupy his attention, Theo looked up immediately when the jingling bell announced Liam's entry. Theo looked... shocked to see him. Like he figured that when Liam had left, he'd left for good. Granted, Liam didn't blame him. It wasn't as if he'd told Theo he'd planned to come back...

Theo swallowed, setting aside the mop he'd just gotten out of the supply closet. Clearing his throat, he took a few steps closer to Liam before he stopped himself, shoving his hands in his pockets. "What can I do for you, Liam?"

Liam cocked his head to the side. "Liam? Not Little Wolf this time?"

Theo scoffed a little, turning his head to the side and shaking it like he couldn't believe he was having this conversation. "Didn't think you'd want me to call you that."

"Why's that?" Liam walked forward, trying to eliminate the distance that felt like miles between them.

"You left, Liam." He didn't sound angry. He sounded resigned. Liam flinched at the pain in his voice. Theo stared down at his hands, picking at the skin around his fingernails. "I get it. Really, I do. Doesn't mean I have to be happy about it."

Liam couldn't help it when the corner of his mouth twitched up. For the first time since - well, since ever, probably - Theo had read him wrong. "You _don't_ get it."

Theo sighed, looking up at the ceiling like he was asking heaven for patience, then he looked back at Liam. "Yeah, Liam, I do. We're friends, and you come to the shop to hang out and I give you a free drink, and we play video games sometimes on my day off, and that's it. That's all it is. I'm not pack, I'm not- I'm not the good guy, and I'm not what you want, and that's _fine_. I get it. You deserve better."

Liam really needed to get a better handle on the whole 'controlling his emotions' thing. He'd figured out how to clamp down on anger, and, yeah, he was feeling just a bit of that at the idea that Theo really thought that about himself. But he hadn't ever thought he'd have to figure out how to hold back a smile, or laughter, or some kind of weird happiness at the thought that Theo thought so highly of him as to think he deserved more than the amazing man in front of him. A quiet laugh bubbled up out of him at the absurdness of the situation. "Dude, I know you can't be right _all the time_ , but I didn't know you could be this wrong. Like, wow."

Theo glared at him. "This is funny to you? Fuck you, Dunbar." Theo stalked behind the counter, slamming on the POS system to initiate its shutdown. 

Liam shook his head, a small grin on his lips as he walked over to the counter. "Theo Raeken, you're an idiot. I mean, I'm an idiot, too, so I'm not judging or anything. I just didn't know you were one too until now."

Theo resolutely ignored him. Liam sighed. Apparently he'd have to try a different tactic to get the chimera's attention. "You were my anchor, too. Just so you know." 

Theo's head snapped up at that. "What?"

"You were my anchor. Scott told me to be my own anchor, but that worked for all of five minutes and then I needed something a bit more substantial." Liam shrugged. "I hadn't realized it was you until about the fifth time you stopped me from doing something really stupid."

Theo blinked. "When-" He stopped, rethinking his question. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Liam snorted. "Why didn't you tell me I was yours?"

Huffing in derision, Theo gave him a dubious look. "Right, because you'd have welcomed the fact that the notoriously evil Theo Raeken was in love with you?"

Liam bit his lower lip, deciding how to respond to that - thinking back to what he was like back then and figuring out a... realistic answer. "Honestly? I'd have balked big time at the whole 'love' bit. At least back then. You being into me though? You caring about me? It's not like it wasn't mutual, Theo. I did literally _just_ tell you that you were my anchor."

"Were?" Theo swallowed. "That's not comforting, Liam. That's not reassuring. Teenagers go through anchors like they go through girlfriends."

Liam leaned forward over the counter, about a foot away from Theo. "It's been over four years, Theo. I have an IED. I’m _literally_ a bomb. I couldn't- I got too angry too often to be able to function with an anchor half a country away. I couldn't be my own anchor in high school, but I didn't have much choice in college. I-" Liam ran a hand through his hair. "I didn't even think you were still in Beacon Hills, Theo. I didn't think you had any reason to stick around, so I figured I had to figure something else out. Just because I loved you didn't mean I thought I'd ever see you again."

Theo sucked in a gasp, followed by a burst of bitter laughter. "Oh, so you loved me, huh?"

Liam nodded. Swallowed. "I didn't know it then. I didn't realize it until I was in my dorm room, wishing you were there with me. The first time I got angry and you weren't there to talk - or knock - some sense into me? Well," Liam huffed, a bitter, self-deprecating tint to his amusement, "let's just say it didn't go well. And in that moment I didn't wish for Scott, my alpha, or Mason, my best friend. I wished _you_ were there. _That_ was when I realized how important you were to me."

Theo sucked in a breath. All Theo had wanted for as long as he could remember was a pack. He couldn't imagine being Liam - having a pack, having people who wanted him - and putting someone else above them. The idea that Liam valued Theo's presence over his _alpha's_? It did far more than make him speechless. 

Still, Theo was Theo, he wasn't one to let himself lose control. He swallowed, forcing himself to clear his throat and look away from the intensity in Liam's eyes so he could get a hold of himself. "You keep using past tense."

Liam snorted. "Well, I am kind of telling a story that happened in the past, Raeken." Theo rolled his eyes and Liam sighed in resignation. He walked around the counter, grabbed Theo's bicep, and forcibly turned him so they were facing each other. He half expected Theo to avoid looking at him, like he'd been doing for most of this conversation, but apparently Theo was just a little fed up. He glared at Liam, jaw set, hands balled into tight fists.

Taking a deep breath, Liam moved his hand from Theo's bicep to the side of his face, waiting for the chimera to angrily shake him off. When he didn't, Liam shifted a little closer. "In the present tense? I love you. You don't have to be my anchor for me to love you, and just because I assumed you moved on with your life, that doesn't mean my heart was with the program." Liam gave him a cheeky smirk. "Or my wolf, for that matter, if you catch my drift."

Theo shook his head, slowly returning the grin. "You, Liam Dunbar, are an idiot."

Liam opened his mouth to return the insult but Theo kept him quiet with a kiss.

Well. He wasn't quiet for long.

After a moment of _holy fuck we're kissing_ , Theo pulled Liam in closer. Liam's other hand came up, sinking into Theo's hair and realigning their faces in the perfect angle. You'd think they'd be running their hands all over each other, that the kiss would be heated and rough and sharp. But it wasn't. It was nothing like that.

They stood still, behind the counter of Theo's coffee shop, holding each other close as they kissed, sweet, soft, and warm, neither fully believing they'd managed to get their heads out of their asses long enough for them to actually have this.

Eventually, it would get heated. Their kiss would deepen, their tongues would twine together, and their hands would run free. They'd revel in what they’d achieved, what they'd dreamed of for years but never truly believed they could have.

And then they'd pull away. Liam would help Theo clean and close up Chimera Coffee. They'd go hand in hand back to Theo's home, and they'd sleep in each other's arms.

Liam would continue to go to the coffee shop, and Theo would continue to give him free drinks, usually a Little Wolf. Liam would move in with Theo, become a high school history teacher, and spend his afternoons grading essays at the bar of the coffee shop, arguing with his love in battles that were always heated, but never really angry. Theo's coffee shop would continue to be successful, but - contrary to what a shrewd businessman would do - he would never franchise or open a second shop. He preferred to keep the things that mattered close to him. His town, his shop, and his love. 

Scott would never come around, but Corey would, and he and Mason would journey back to Beacon Hills for visits as often as they could. They'd be the best men at Liam and Theo's wedding, though it would take years after that day in the coffee shop before they were married. They never really saw the need for rings or a marriage certificate when something so much stronger held them together.

Theo changed one thing about his business when they got together. The tagline.

“ _I would die for brew._ ”

**Author's Note:**

> So? How did I do? Let me know in the comments!
> 
> Kudos give me wings!


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